For Your Entertainment
by Lexaii
Summary: Kagome is an entertainer and a thief. She walks into a town to entertain, walks out with its goods. When she's invited to entertain Prince Inuyasha at his castle, she can't help but linger before she simply steals and runs...
1. The Way of the Thief

**Purely inspired by nostalgia, a scene I remembered from Zero no Tsukaima, a scene I remembered from a Naruto movie I briefly watched with my sister, and Urd-chan's fanarts for her fanfiction Temple of the Dog on deviantart. I'm currently in the process of reading it, and it is amazing :)**

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"Miroku! Hurry up with those sutras! I'm pretty sure the town watchmen'll be coming soon," Kagome called to Miroku from next to the door of the town's richest family. "Shippo and I are ready to go."

"Just a moment," Miroku called back to Kagome and Shippo. "Annnnd.. finished."

Miroku ran to the waiting Kagome and Shippo and handed them the sutras. The three of them were now ready to make their exit. Miroku placed a sutra on his, Kagome, and Shippo's forehead. Shippo then slapped a leaf on to each of their sutras, reciting an old fox demon chant he was still perfecting. The three of them were now invisible. Kagome nodded and led Shippo into the home of their victim.

The two of them gasped at the sight of everything. Despite it being but the main room, there were still elegant paintings, china pottery, and fine silks served as curtains. Kagome smirked and began wrapping the paintings ever so carefully and placing them into her bag. Shippo was working with the pottery, gently placing them into his bag, as not to break them or make any noise. The people of the home were fast asleep by now, no doubt, and it would harm them immensely if someone found them.

When the two of them finished up, they began taking down the silk curtains and wrapping them around them as cloaks. They scanned the room to make sure there were no signs of anything else valuable before placing sutras and leaves on the bags and the curtains. They rushed out of the main room and carefully slipped into the others, repeating their previous steps of stealing all the precious items with swiftness and stealth.

Once the two were out they rushed passed Miroku. He smirked upon seeing the immense loads crammed into their bags and looked around for any bodies quickly before catching up to them.

They ran out of the town and purposely off of the dirt roads and to the nearest river, something other thieves took no care in doing. You can't run on the roads because the good demons track your steps or scent. You run into the rivers and mask your scent. Not that the three of them needed to mask their scent, for the sutras took care in doing that, but they weren't taking any risks.

"Shippo, now would be a good time to transform," Kagome whispered to her fox demon companion. She wouldn't need to speak loudly, the ears of a demon would pick it up clearly. That was something else other thieves took no care in. They didn't bother to have a demon with them. They thought they didn't have an ounce of trust or faith in them and would turn on them for other demons or turn them in. But that wasn't the case. It was important to have a demon companion with you, fully trained of not. They will _always _come in handy. You don't have to shout, or ask for any assistance beforehand. They can smell any emotion off of you, which lessens the need to speak. They can also smell, hear, or sense any predators coming your way.

Shippo simply nodded before transforming into a pink-ish blob and grabbing both Miroku and Kagome to place on him to reach higher grounds of safety, and look for good camp grounds for the rest of the night.

Kagome stretched as Shippo lifted them higher and higher, their invisibility now long gone. She ripped her sutra and leaf off and ripped it to shreds, to get rid of the evidence, before tossing it off and watched it fly off through the wind. "Jeez! I thought those men back there would never leave me alone!"

"Boasting about your grace and beauty, now are we, Kagome dear?" Miroku asked and waggled his brows. Kagome giggled and punched his arm, causing him to tip over greatly. "Though I admit, those men sure did have a thing for you, compared to the others in previous towns we have visited."

She sighed in content before looking out over the view before them. It was truly beautiful. Another pro to being a professional thief, you get the goods out of the bads. Most thieves would be stressing over what to do next, but when you're a pro, you don't have to. You simply sit back and enjoy the view when your job was done (literally).

The lush, green trees beneath them were close together, but left a path for the road to follow. The sun was just peaking over the horizon when the three of them heard a faint feminine scream in the distance. Shippo smirked and the others just laughed.

"What's going on right now, Shippo?" Kagome asked him as she sat propped up on her elbows. She had half of the goods in her lap, the other half in Miroku's.

"She just woke up, and found her goods missing," He responded with a cheer in his voice. He paused for a moment, focusing on his target and listening to the vague words. He was at the stage of a retired demon at age eleven, which was highly impressive for a demon, but he was still young, and his senses still needed time to help him improve. "I... I think she called for the town watchmen... yeah, she called for them. Right now they're probably inspecting everything."

"Another mission accomplished!" Kagome sighed as she lay back on Shippo. She closed her eyes and thought about her friend on a private task at an old town far off with many goods to speak of. _Lucky girl..._ She thought. Private tasks were rare and hard to get when you tried to stay secret.

Her, Shippo, Miroku, and her friend Sango all worked together in robbery. The four of them pretended to be harmless entertainers and waltzed right into a town to steal, then run out leaving no suspicions or traces of them ever being the cause of it all. They didn't want to become a well known group of entertainers, the risks of getting caught were too high then. They tried to keep a bit secretive, but it was always nice to have what they called private tasks – a mission where you are _invited_ into the town, alone or with the group. Its always challenging when you're alone, you're at a higher risk for everything.

Even if their main goal was to steal, they also loved to perform, so it worked out nicely. Kagome was a dancer and singer. She managed to keep the men busy if time was needed. Sango was specialized in weaponry. She came from a long ling of demon exterminators, and she always had tales to tell the children of her adventures when she was younger, before she was a robber. Miroku was their musician, put any instrument in his hands and he'll figure it out faster than anyone else. He managed to keep the women busy if needed, and if he just purely felt like he needed some action that night. Shippo was an illusionist. He could make illusions, prank you, and was cheerful and cute, which usually got the group some coos.

"I miss her," Miroku said randomly, interrupting Kagome from her thoughts. At first she was startled and had no idea who he was talking about, but then thought to Sango, someone who he cared for deeply. Although he would often tell her about how he really did care for her, she never believed him because his womanizing was just too much. He bowed his head lightly and pressed his lips in a firm line.

"If you miss her so much, you shouldn't drive her away too often," Shippo responded before Kagome could answer. "She was _way _too happy when she got this task. Usually she's a little sad, knowing for a week or two we'll be separated, but there was no trace of it on her when she left this time."

Miroku heaved a sigh before looking back up. "I really can't help it. Its just... when she doesn't except me it drives me to the second attention – women. And the women from the last town were so beau-"

"Miroku, seriously. Just try not to womanize for like.. a month when she comes back. That's a long time for you, I'm pretty sure she'll be impressed," Kagome said and sat up to comfort Miroku. "You should give her stuff too.."

"Kagome, this is about Sango's fantasy," Miroku said and glared at her. "Not yours."

She simply shrugged it off. They often had family-like arguments, and got over them quickly. "Just tryna help."

Miroku sighed heavily again. "I know.. I'm sorry.. I just get all bitchy when she's not around.."

Kagome smiled before putting her hand on Miroku's shoulder. "It's alright. She'll be back soon."

"Landing." Shippo stated and began lowering to the ground he declared as their campsite. Shippo often chose where they landed, since he was always the one driving them around.

Once landed, Kagome took off to the river that was bound to be near. They never landed unless water was near for all of their essentials. "I'll be back in an hour or so.." She said lazily over her shoulder.

When she reached the river she stripped of her attire from the previous day. She stepped into the river and sighed in content at the feel of the water rushing past her. She thought hard about the next market they would be coming to, and what they should keep in case Sango wanted, or what they should sell. She gave up a while later and soaked her whole body before coming out of the river and drying off.

"Ahh, well..." She mumbled as she headed back to camp.

"Miroku, Shippo, you guys can take a bath now," She called when she heard their voices.

"Ah, Kagome, back so soon?" Miroku called back as she entered their clearing. The two had already made a fire, and seemed to already be sorting through the selling goods and the keeping goods. Miroku got up and dusted off his robes before smiling at Kagome. "I won't be taking a bath today."

Kagome tilted her head to the side in confusion. "Not taking a bath..? What are you two up to?"

Shippo chuckled and jumped onto Miroku's shoulder. "Nothing, really. Miroku just got invited to perform at Sango's town!"

Kagome smiled greatly. "What? Seriously! This is great!"

Miroku chuckled and motioned for her to sit down. "Come, sit, I shall explain. Much has happened during the short amount of time you were away at the river."

Kagome sat and waited for Miroku to continue while she idly brushed her fingers through her wet hair. He sat down across from her and began picking at the fire with a smile.

"While you were gone I took a stroll, just to get a bit familiar with the forest in case of anything out of the ordinary, like I usually do, when these two men had come up to me. They asked what I was doing out here by myself, and I told them I was a traveling musician. They hastily asked if I would come and perform for their town, since it seemed to be quite dull lately, and so-"

"It can't be dull.. you two told me Sango's there right now." Kagome interrupted and furrowed her brows. "What if ..something went.. wrong..?"

"Kagome, you need not worry," Miroku added cheerfully, completely ignoring the fact that Kagome him off. "They told me about the town, Town Kyoko – The town of Tune. I told them that I knew of a performer who was currently there. They told me that it would be excellent if I would accompany her in their town. Not only do they know that Sango is there, based on how they described her as 'a skilled weaponist', but they asked me to actually perform with her! This could be my chance to see her after these past weeks!"

Kagome, Miroku, and Shippo were all smiling widely, not only about knowing that they had an update on their friend, but that Miroku had been received a private task to accompany her in Town Kyoko.

The following day, Miroku would be on his way to Town Kyoko with some of the goods they had recently stolen. Kagome and Shippo would continue venturing forward, in hopes to find another good steal.

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**Its boring, I know. Wasn't proof read, either. Its a prologue though! I dont exactly work hard on those . Review please, don't hesitate to ask any questions, either!**


	2. An Invitation

"Miroku, are you sure you're gonna be fine on your own?" Kagome asked for probably the 6th time that afternoon. Miroku snickered as he continued packing away his instruments and extra money.

"You think I, a grown man, would do worse off than you, a still growing woman, on a 2 day trip to a town?" He asked and stopped his work to look up at Kagome, giving the undivided attention sort of look. Kagome scoffed and crossed her arms, leaning on one leg.

"Its not how well you're gonna do traveling, its how well you can restrain yourself from the women of passing towns and villages," She added matter of factly. Shippo covered his mouth to prevent an oncoming laugh. Miroku merely sighed and continued his work.

"Well, if I know that I'll be seeing Sango in 2 days, maybe 1 if I don't stop for many re-stocks (insert mumbling about women restocks here) I think I could hold out," Miroku concluded and glared at Shippo and Kagome. "I have no ill intentions if the goal in the end is a nice, round, luscious, handful of Sango's a-"

"Miroku!" Kagome shouted and balled her fists at her sides. "Those _are _ill intentions you idiot!"

Miroku waved it off and closed his pack. "I'll see you two in a week or two possibly. The longest we both could possibly be gone for is 3 weeks. Make sure you have enough money to re-stock on supplies, oh, and also, get a few weapons in case of an ambush. And don't forget about the extra sutras I've pre-written. Those will come in handy if there's an ambush, too. And Shippo, remember not to-"

"Miroku, shut up and leave already," Shippo mumbled. Miroku hauled is pack over his shoulder and saluted to both Shippo and Kagome with a smile. "I can take care of myself _and _Kagome."

"I'm kidding, you two idiots," He said, still smiling. "Just behave."

Kagome sighed in content and hit Miroku on the arm. "Good luck with Sango, kiddo."

"You're calling _me_ kiddo," He mumbled and patted her head. "Bye you two."

Shippo and Kagome nodded and waved as Miroku left for Town Kyoko.

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"Is the musician on his way?" A menacing voice asked through the darkness of the room. His servant knelt before him and lowered her head, hiding the snarl on her face.

"Yes, sire."

"Have the men from Kyoko been terminated?"

She breathed in deeply and closed her eyes. "..Yes, sire."

"How is the weaponist?"

"She is fine, sire," She responded. When her reply was silence, she began to stand back up.

"Wait," Came the menacing voice. "Did I ask you to leave?"

"No, sire," She said, not even bothering to kneel. "What might you be in need of?"

"The other two," He said and stood. "Bring them here."

Her face remained calm as she spoke, though inside she was confused. _Just what are you planning..._ "Yes, sire. It will be done."

"Mm," He responded. "You are dismissed."

She nodded and plucked the feather from her hair. A whirlwind formed around her and she soon disappeared on the enlarged feather from the window.

"Those two.." He whispered into the darkness. "Those two shall suffer as well."

He turned at looked out the window at the two silver-headed men arguing in the courtyard. "They shall all suffer..."

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Kagome and Shippo began strolling down the road once Miroku was beyond the horizon. It was a beautiful day out, and both of them had decided they would camp out tonight and not bother visiting the next town.

"Hey, Shippo," Kagome asked as she looked up at the blue sky.

"Hmm?"

"You sense anyone coming up?" She asked aimlessly. Shippo's senses sharpened at the request. His nose and ears began twitching and he focused solely on sensing anyone.

"Mmm.. oh!" His ears perked up as he sensed someone. "I sense someone! Wait, no, more than one!"

"Alright, kiddo," Kagome said and smiled. "Let's strut the strut."

Shippo smirked as he picked a few toys out of his vest. "Kitsunebi!" He yelled and his toys began glowing a blue. He tossed them around a few times to get a feel for them. Once he was ready he was juggling them and smiling.

Kagome stretched her arms and legs a bit and a cartwheel to further her streches. She landed flawlessly on her feet and smiled in content. "Have they gotten any closer?" She asked as she began doing flips and dances.

"Yep, they're coming up real soon!" He chirped excitedly. Kagome smiled at his antics. She could now hear the sound of a horse-drawn carriage and a few men chatting. When she saw them approaching she smiled widely and began walking on her hands. "Why, hello there!"

All the men stopped talking and acknowledged Kagome and Shippo. They passed knowing glances at each other when their eyes landed upon Kagome. "Why, hello to you too, girl, demon."

Shippo took no offense to the remark that was considered rude. He merely grinned wider, maybe even charminger. Kagome sprang up from her hands and onto her feet and began walking towards the men, who had now stopped their carriage. She played with the shawl around her shoulders as if she were twirling her hair. "Where are you three headed?"

"To find you two, actually.." One of the men said seductively. Kagome's eyes widened a fraction and glanced over at Shippo, who shrugged his shoulders.

"Is that so?" She smiled as she spoke and leaned against the carriage.

"It is. Our sire requested us to find you," The last man said as he licked his lips. Kagome's eyes bulged even more and she almost keeled over in surprise. "I presume you two are, 'A female dancer and a fox demon.'"

"S-sire?" She was finally starting to lose her cool. "Your sire requested of us? As in the king?"

"Indeed, girl," The second man said. "Might you two hop in?"

Kagome looked over at Shippo, who was already scrambling for the carriage. She smiled and thanked the men with a small two finger salute before hopping in after Shippo.

"Well this is good," Shippo said and put his toys back into his vest, in the process checking on their money and selling goods, which he had shrunk to fit. "Really really good."

"Yep," Kagome said as she bounced lightly in her seat. "Yepyepyepyepyepyepyepyepyep."

"Miroku and Sango would be so jealous we're doing this without them," Shippo said as he looked around the carriage. Kagome laughed lightly and nestled down into the seat.

"I don't know what's better, being invited to the castle from the king himself, or being able to steal from it," She whispered. "The best part is no one will even know. It's a good thing Miroku gave us those extra sutras..."

"Yep!" Shippo said, popping his P. "Onto the castle we go!"

Kagome smiled and laughed as she felt the pull of the carriage towards the castle. She looked out the window with a smile as Shippo rambled about how much they had to do when they got there. She sighed in content before just grabbing Shippo and hugging him to her tightly to shut him up before taking a light nap.

**Meh. I wasn't in much of a writing mood, but I felt this one needed to come out soon. I hope those who read this enjoy it :) Please Review, Favorite, whatever the hell ya feel. I'd also like to clarify that the sutras are badassities. As in after they put it on no one remembers who they are except for those four, Shippo, Kagome, Miroku, and Sango. At least, no one has bad thoughts of them. Hence the religion sort of thing playing part there, of making people think their good lol :DThat wasn't really mentioned or clarified in the last chapter, and it wouldn't make much sense if I said they left a town and no one remembered them later I guess?**


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